The Pete Dye Course at French Lick Resort
Certain golf courses leave an immediate impact on you, and you know right away that you’ve just experienced something that you will remember for the rest of your life. For the Travel Caddie, The Pete Dye Course at French Lick Resort is one of those experiences. Â
Designed into the side of Mt. Airie at one of the highest points in the state of Indiana, this beautiful and challenging layout almost didn’t come to fruition. Legendary Indiana designer Pete Dye first thought that the site for this course was too rugged and that the slopes were too severe to design a golf course on it. Luckily for us, Dye changed his mind and what started as a design sketched out on a napkin was later developed into one of the best golf courses in the world.
We know that sounds like high praise, but once you have a chance to experience this course you will quickly understand why we’ve used such strong language to describe this course. As words can’t do it justice, we’ve taken the pleasure of putting together this exclusive drone footage of the course for you here:
The Pete Dye Course: An immediate impact
Upon arrival, you immediately take in the uninterrupted views of the southern Indiana countryside and experience the golf nirvana that is French Lick, Indiana. And as you make your way to the first tee and take your first glance at the scorecard, you get a little glimpse into what your day entails. This course tips out at around 8,100 yards, so be sure to pick the correct set of tees here as length is only one of the many obstacles you will find during your round here. The course features dramatic elevation changes, undulated putting surfaces, steep drop offs around the greens, tight landing areas, and when you miss the fairways here you will often find the severely sloping rough areas. Â
Water hazards are few and far between here, and the long par-3 16th hole is the only hole where the water makes a significant impact. What you will encounter frequently throughout the round are a multitude of strategically placed bunkers that will certainly make an impact on how you play this course.
The Pete Dye Course at French Lick Resort
The Donald Ross Course: Classic and Pure
While Dye certainly delivers the drama on his design, The Donald Ross Course at French Lick Resort offers a welcomed yet stark contrast to your golfing experience here. The Donald Ross Course is a perfect example of classic golf course design by one of the game’s most legendary architects. The course opened in 1917, and at over 7,000 yards from the tips here in a par-70 layout, this course will challenge even the best players.
While this course wasn’t built into the side of a mountain, it is located on a very hilly piece of property and features significant elevation changes on many of the holes here. One thing that is immediately noticeable are the notorious Ross bunkers that are deep with flat bottoms and will require all your skills to get up and down on the severely undulating greens. Â
The greens often feature run offs and false fronts both into fairway level grass and thick rough, so being able to control your distance on both uphill and downhill shots will be a major key to keeping a good round going here. Another signature element of this layout is the dense and penal fescue rough areas that can swallow up errant shots throughout your round placing a premium on accuracy and rewarding golfers who find the short grass off the tee here.
What’s so great about this resort is that you’ll often hear golfers after their round discussing which course they like more between the Dye and the Ross courses, and there are sound and reasonable arguments on both sides. Lucky for you, you don’t have to pick one or the other, as any itinerary for a golf trip here should certainly include at least one round on each of these two amazing designs.
The Donald Ross Course at French Lick Resort
The Valley Links Course at French Lick: Fun and friendly for all
The sometimes-overlooked Valley Links Course is an incredibly fun track to add into your golf trip at French Lick Resort. Designed by Tom Bendelow as part of what was once an 18-hole golf course, the Valley Links Course offers both experienced and beginning golfers with a fun and more affordable design. While the course was redesigned with beginners and young golfers in mind, the team here has done a great job of creating a variety of experiences as the course can be played as short as 1,100 yards and can stretch back to nearly 3,500 yards. Nowhere is that length more evident than on the par-3 3rd hole that played almost 240 yards during our round here. It’s a great addition to your trip, and it’s the perfect place to settle any lingering bets that may have occurred from Dye or the Ross courses.
The Valley Links Course at French Lick Resort
Recommendation
There’s a reason why The Pete Dye Course and The Donald Ross Course at French Lick Resort are often rated as the No. 1 and No. 2 best courses in the state of Indiana. The golf experience here is exceptional, and for players looking to add a third 18-hole experience into your trip, the team at French Lick Resort can also help you play nearby Sultan’s Run Golf Club that has recently undergone a massive renovation into their clubhouse facilities to further enhance an already great experience.
Be sure to book a stay at French Lick Resort at either the French Lick Springs Hotel, West Baden Springs Hotel, or the Valley Tower Hotel and enjoy everything the resort has to offer that ranges from horseback riding, shooting ranges, multiple pools, hiking trails, bike rentals, gaming on the 24/7 French Lick Casino floor, top-notch dining, and so much more.